M. F. Işik Oblikovanje i implementacija seta za učenje za primjenu na distribuiranom sustavu i mehatronici: učenje na temelju projekta Tehnički vjesnik 23, 6(2016), 1609-1616 1609 ISSN 1330-3651 (Print), ISSN 1848-6339 (Online) DOI: 10.17559/TV-20141218095138 DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A TRAINING SET FOR DISTRIBUTED SYSTEM AND MECHATRONIC APPLICATIONS: PROJECT BASED LEARNING Mehmet Fatih Işik Orginal scientific paper Nowadays, with the development of information technology, real-time and reliable devices have been developed for users and system control. Commonly used ones are programmable logic controller and operator panels. Programming of these devices, learning the communication with the controller and the hardware installations have gained great importance especially for technical staff and engineering students. In this study, automation and control technique training sets were developed for the applications used widely in industrial applications. In the training sets, programmable logic controller (PLC) and human machine interface (HMI) were used for the control. With the training sets both automation education and control techniques such as P, PI, and PID are compared. At the same time, skills and logical programming abilities of the students studying in the training were attempted to be improved with this application. In order to measure and evaluate, 18 technical staff working in the industrial sector, 14 students studying automation engineering and eight students studying pre-license training, a group of 40 people in total was formed and performances were measured at the end of the training. Keywords: automation; distributed system; servo systems, training set Oblikovanje i implementacija seta za učenje za primjenu na distribuiranom sustavu i mehatronici: učenje na temelju projekta Izvorni znanstveni članak Danas, s razvojem informatičke tehnologije, razvijeni su suvremeni i pouzdani uređaji za korisnike i upravljanje sustavom. Najviše korišteni su paneli za operatera i regulatori logike za programiranje. Programiranje ovih uređaja, učenje kako komunicirati s kontrolnim i hardverskim instalacijama postalo je vrlo važno posebice za tehničko osoblje i studente inženjerstva. U ovom radu, razvijeni su setovi za učenje tehnika za automatizaciju i upravljanje koji se uvelike rabe u industrijskim aplikacijama. U tim su se setovima za upravljanje koristili regulator logike za programiranje (PLC) i sučelje između čovjeka i stroja - human machine interface (HMI). U setovima za učenje paralelno su se uspoređivale i uvježbavale tehnike automatizacije i regulacije kao P, PI i PID. U isto vrijeme, s tom su se aplikacijom pokušavale popraviti vještine i sposobnosti logičkog programiranja obučavanih studenata. U svrhu mjerenja i evaluacije, formirana je grupa od 40 ljudi - 18 pripadnika tehničkog osoblja iz industrijskog sektora, 14 studenata inžinjerstva automatizacije i 8 studenata pripremanih za rad prije stjecanja diplome, čije su se sposobnosti mjerile po završetku obuke. Ključne riječi: automatizacija; distribuirani sustav; servo sustavi; set za učenje 1 Introduction Automatic control systems are the basis of many structures used in industrial applications. The main purpose of the automatic control system is automatic usage of the process after the user’s control. The control is based on the principle of moving the mechanical systems with electric motors. Even though electric machines show differences in structure, all of them convert electrical energy to mechanical energy [1]. For the control used in the industrial control systems, all electric engines may not be suitable. In this case, depending on the size to be controlled, a proper motor selection must be made. While step motor or servomotors are usually used in the applications in which position control is needed, in many applications, asynchronous motors are preferred. Asynchronous motors are the most used electric motors in industry because of their simple structure, low cost and low maintenance need. Asynchronous motors are manufactured in 1-phase and 3-phase [2]. The usage of 70 % of the energy produced in the world on these motors shows their importance and usage frequency [3]. Single phase asynchronous motors are widely used in home appliances [4]. One of the biggest problems of countries trying to take steps towards industrialization is the setting up of the automation and the lack of staff who can intervene in case of any problems while at the same time checking and setting up the automation system. A special learning environment was created by gathering participants at an industrial college and engineering students. In addition to theoretical training, skills training education for practical purposes was also given to the trainees. Various academic studies have been performed related to mechatronic applications and significantly successful results have been obtained [5, 6]. Among these studies, applications related to electrical machines and their controls [7÷13], which may provide contributions to engineering education, coincide in the literature. In addition, virtual lab applications are also very prevalent. In today’s world, asynchronous motors are used much more commonly to meet electro-mechanical energy needs. The disadvantage of AM when compared to Direct Current (DA) motors is that they require complex control and transformation algorithms. The reason for this is that the machine has a nonlinear structure. Developments in power electronics have made the semi-conductor circuit elements with high current and high voltage available as reliable and economically beneficial. Thus in a very wide power range, it is possible to produce frequency and voltage adjustable systems which are needed for the speed and moment control of the AM. Nowadays, AM’s are controlled by microprocessor-controlled power electronics circuits. Use of automation systems is considered to be one of the methods used to increase the speed and quality of production in industry. The network is an important component in automation systems. Many different network structures are used in these systems [1].